Saturday, October 8, 2011

Christians Have Nothing to Lose

The world is a dangerous place for Christians. When Jesus sent out His disciples in Matthew 10:16, He warned them, "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves." Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani would agree. The wolves are circling around him waiting for the kill.

This past week, this Iranian pastor faced execution rather than recant his Christian faith. Pastor Nadarkhani, who claims he was never a Muslim, was found guilty of converting to Christianity by the 11th Branch of the Gilan Provincial Court because he has an Islamic ancestry.

When asked to repent, Nadarkhani stated, "Repent means to return. What should I return to? To the blasphemy that I had before my faith in Christ?"

"To the religion of your ancestors, Islam." the judge replied.

"I cannot." Nadarkhani answered.

Thus the verdict - the sheep was found guilty. Since the public outcry, the Iranian officials, after the fact, claim his case is about rape and extortion. How convenient. The truth is he gained notice of the Iranian officials because his house church had grown to 400 people, and he questioned the indoctrination of his children by Iranian schools.

Nadarkhani isn't alone. Elam Ministries of England reports that during the six months from June 2010 until January 2011, a total of 202 such arrests occurred in Iran. The sheep were rounded up. But even though stories like this aren't reported often, stories like this are extremely common. As a matter of fact, each year about 100,000 Christians are martyred world wide. Romans 8:36 says, "We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter;" and world wide, the slaughter of Christians takes place.

The number of "silent killings" of Christians in Nigeria over the past few months failed to make the news. International Christian Concern reports that radical Muslim leader, Boko Haran, has killed at least ten Christians in Maiduguri, Nigeria, for violations of Sharia Law.

In 2009 in Pakistan, Asa Bibi, a mother of five, working with other women in a field picking berries, went to the well for a bucket of drinking water. When she returned, the other women refused to drink from it saying it was contaminated having been touched by a Christian. There was an altercation, and the Muslim women went to a cleric to accuse Bibi of blasphemy.

Bibi was tried for violating Pakistani Penal Code, section 295c, which says, "Whoever . . . defiles the sacred name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) shall be punished with death, or imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable for fine." According to the London Telegraph, she was "convicted on the evidence of two witnesses who were not present in the fields where the exchange is supposed to have taken place." Bibi still remains in prison, and her family hides in fear for their lives.

Why would these Christians refuse to recant in the face of this intense persecution? Reading the Scriptures makes it clear. In Luke 12:4-5. Jesus told us,
"My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell: yes, I say to you, fear Him."
The answer is simple. All men can do is kill you. But, God holds your eternal soul in His hands. Fear God more.

But the next verses show how much God cares. In Luke 12:6-7, Jesus says,
"Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are numbered. Do not fear, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows."

The good news for believers is that God has already taken the eternal risk out of death. In John 11:25, Jesus assures us, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live." In Romans 8:35, Paul asks a rhetorical question, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" Then he lists as many things that he can think of that might. But none of them can. Paul's conclusion, in Romans 8:38-39 states,
"For I am persuaded that neither life nor death . . . nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

We all die. Why shouldn't we die for something worthwhile? And what is more worthwhile than serving the King of kings and Lord of lords who loves us and rewards us? God is great at rewarding us. Jesus assured us, in Matthew 5:11-12,
"Blessed are you when the revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven."
We have nothing to lose by serving God and everything to gain.

In his History of Christian Missions, Stephen Neil wrote that every early Christian "knew that sooner or later he might have to testify to his faith at the cost of his life." More and more, that is becoming true again today. We, as Christians, must be prepared for it.

Even here in America, we see the bubble of protection afforded to us by our First Amendment being eroded. Whether it's the firing of Frank Turek by Cisco for comments in favor of traditional marriage, the intimidation against those in California who favored Proposition 8, or the resignation of Laura L. Fortusky, town clerk in Barker, New York, rather than be forced to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, the threat is real. Even the Bangotr Daily News reported death threats against Marc Mutty and Michael Heath for their work turning back same-sex marriages in Maine in 2009.

Quoting Alan Sears,
"From high school and college textbooks that ridicule or try to expunge our historical Judeo-Christian roots, to shameless lawsuits against the public display of symbols identifiable with Christianity, to the hampering of the religious speech of public officials, and of course, the ongoing governmental limitations on the First Amendment protected rights of pastors in the pulpits, Christians (and Christianity) are forced to fight for the freedom so many others readily enjoy."

In the words of John Piper, "In America and around the world, the price of being a real Christian is rising. Things are getting back to normal."

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